Residents of Kampala line up to cast their votes during the 2021 General Election. PHOTO/ FILE
As the country gears up for the 2026 General Election, the Electoral Commission (EC) has announced more than 13,000 job slots.
The job call issued last Wednesday seeks to recruit 2,300 sub-county election officers and 10,717 to oversee the exercise countrywide.
The general election is expected to run between January 12 and February 9, 2026.
Mr Julius Mucunguzi, the EC spokesperson, yesterday said the planned recruitment aims to beef up the Commission’s manpower as they start implementing major activities on the 2025/2026 electoral road map.
“The major activities on the electoral road map are done at the lowest level and yet the Commission does not have the manpower to reach there and that’s why we are doing these temporary recruitments to support us in most of these exercises,” he said.
The Commission, he said, would in January next year kick off the major activities on the road map, including updating the national voter’s register, followed by its display which all need enough manpower for the countrywide wide.
Requirements
EC, a government agency that conducts public elections and referenda, asked suitable candidates for the 13,017 job slots to submit their applications to the District Election Administrators (DEA) of their areas no later than November 4.
The candidates must among others be qualified with proven integrity and initiative, results-oriented, able to work in teams under minimum supervision, and have excellent client care.
The applicants are required to possess a valid National Identity card or National Identification Number (NIN), a comprehensive curriculum vitae (CV), academic certificates or testimonials, with two referees and daytime telephone contact. They are to submit a handwritten or typed application clearly indicating the position applied for.
“A short list of candidates to appear for interviews will be pinned at the office of the DEA in your district. The date for conducting interviews will be communicated to you through the office of the DEA and through announcements on local radio stations. Successful candidates will be informed through the same office and will be issued with appointment letters,” the advert read in part.
“Successful candidates will be paid through e-cash. Therefore, applicants must possess a phone number registered on mobile money in their names. The Electoral Commission is an Equal Opportunity employer and, therefore, all qualified persons are encouraged to apply,” it added.
Left to Right: Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, EC chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama, and Justice Minister Norbert Mao at the launch of the 2026 poll roadmap in Kampala in August last year. PHOTO | ABUBAKER LUBOWA
Applicants for the Sub-county Election Officer, with 2,300 slots, must possess Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) or its equivalent, should have high moral character and proven integrity, be resident in the Sub-county for at least three (3) years, be a registered voter, have considerable knowledge of the electoral process in Uganda, have a crime-free record; and should also have an experience in handling public affairs.
Responsibilities
The sub-county election officers are to handle 13 responsibilities, including administering all electoral activities, conducting voter education, issuing out voter location slips, updating the voters register, assisting in mobilising people to turn up and participate in electoral activities, conducting nominations, campaigns, and polling day activities, and make election activity reports to the Returning Officer.
Others are he or she will; be responsible for EC equipment and materials within the area of jurisdiction, participate in recruiting and training, registration, display and polling day officials, ensure election materials reach polling stations on time, conduct publicity of electoral activities, provide information and statistics on voter registration, voting and elections, and do any other official duties assigned from time to time.
The parish election officers will be required to have a Uganda Certificate of Education, with the rest of the requirements remaining the same. Relatedly, the Parish Election Officer will execute the same activities and mandates as those of their Sub-County counterparts, only that they will be limited to their respective Parishes.
The EC requires both the Sub-county and Parish Election Officers to have special skills, including the ability to command respect, considerable knowledge and exposure to the electoral process, good communication, interpersonal and teamwork skills, capacity to work with senior personalities in different occupations, analytical and problem-solving skills, ability to train, and ability to work under tight deadlines.
Mr Mucunguzi said the recruited temporary staff would be taken through a comprehensive training before being deployed.
“They hold the jobs on temporary terms of three months that will be renewable depending on the need because there are certain activities that do not necessarily need a countrywide deployment, so we shall be deploying them where the need arises,” he said.
Electoral Commisison spokesperson Julius Mucunguzi. PHOTO/HANDOUT
The general update of the voters’ register in each Parish, the displaying of the National Voters’ Register at each polling station, and nomination of village and parish candidates are among the major countrywide activities on the road map that will start early next year.
Revised electoral roadmap
Justice Simon Byabakama, the EC chairperson, told reporters in July that the Commission was forced to revise the electoral road map and accommodate some of the activities that had been missed in the previous year due to lack of funds.
Mr Mucunguzi said the recruitment of these officers is one of those activities, which he said are not new because the Commission has been recruiting temporary staff during every general election.
“The temporary staff are the foot soldiers of the Commission during the implementation of some of the main labour-intensive activities of the electoral roadmap. They operate at polling stations within the parish and sub-county. In doing that work, they are supervised by a full-time staff of the Commission at the district level, led by the district election administrator,” he said.
ELECTORAL ROADMAP
Key dates and activities
• July 2024: Field Demarcation of Constituencies and Electoral Areas and Reorganisation of Polling Stations.
• January 2025: Update of the National Voters’ Register and Compilation of Youth, PWDs, Older Persons & Workers Registers.
• April 2025: Display of the SIG Committees Voters Register in each village.
• Nomination of candidates for village, parish/ward SIG committees.
• July 2025: Deadline for the establishment of academic papers with the EC by aspiring candidates (Local Governments, Parliamentary and Presidential).
• June to October 2025: Deadline for re-signation by public servants intending to contest (Local Governments, Parliamentary and Presidential).
• August 2025: Nomination, campaigns, and polling for National Youth Council Committee.
• October 2025: Nomination of candidates (Local Governments, Parliamentary and Presidential) .
• January -February 2026: Polling period for presidential, parliamentary, and Local Governments councils. Source: The electoral Commission 2025/2026 electoral roadmap
